parrexcellence.blog

For the first time in my life, I have my doubts about the future of America as it currently stands. Like most people, I am taking it day by day, carrying on as if the effects of hypercapitalism haven’t reverberated into every aspect of our lives. Multiple generations are burnt out, the cost of goods and services continue to rise while wages seemingly stay stagnant, a man just became a trillionaire while the rest of us continue to be cogs in a machine that would prefer to replace us with artificial intelligence, governments are approving AI data center construction that would have severe impacts for local communities, et cetera. 

It’s easy to get stuck in a hyperloop of doom, especially on social media. One of my goals for the rest of this year is to find more clarity in how to move forward, a path beyond the cards we’ve been dealt. I’ve been more intentional with the media I choose to consume, and the thought processes that follow have been ultimately beneficial. The core messages I’ve gleaned from some of the books I’ve read and games I’ve played lately are the importance of community and hope, and looking forward, not backward.

I finally finished the Parable of the Sower series by Octavia Butler last month. In these two books, the protagonist Lauren Olamina must forge her own future in a world devastated by political, environmental, and societal “change.” Despite the upheaval in her world, Olamina manages to repackage “change” as a positive force with the creation of her Earthseed religion. Instead of staying stagnant and accepting society for what it has become, or falling in line with the politics of her time, Olamina and her associates build a self-sufficient, yet cooperative community called Acorn. The residents of the Acorn community ensure everyone is well cared for, fed, and safe, but informed of the pitfalls of modern society. 

While Acorn is not perfect, some of the core concepts I’ve derived are the importance of encouraging each citizen to become useful in some way, recycling, education, and holding onto hope. Another key theme I’ve gleaned is the importance of resiliency in America. If we are to continue surviving, we can’t just throw our hands up and give up when things seem dire. We can’t write off whole communities just because we assume they all voted a certain way. We’re all in this together. 

I’ve also enjoyed unwinding from daily responsibilities with life and farming simulation games such as Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. My latest obsession in this particular gaming genre is My Time At Sandrock. Instead of farming as the primary focus, in My Time at Sandrock, your character is a builder who moves to a desert town known as Sandrock. As a builder, you are commissioned to build and restore structures, machines, and more for the residents of Sandrock. So much is accomplished in this game when you team up with the residents or visitors to build or restore infrastructure. 

Resources are also rationed. Unlike many of the other “cozy” farming sims I’ve played, this game also stresses the importance of rationing water, not just for human and plant consumption, but also in the use of machinery. I haven’t fully wrapped my head around just how much water consumption is needed in manufacturing in real life. Historic droughts have also impacted both my birthplace of California and my current home of Florida. Now while I haven’t constructed a dew collector to catch rainfall at my house, playing My Time at Sandrock definitely has me thinking about ways I can conserve resources in real life.

Other than pondering about what to do in real life after reading or playing my cozy games, I’ve only just started making small preparations for our future. My household has started eliminating plastic and recycling more. I do thrift more than shop for new items. I’ve started collecting physical copies of classic literature for educational purposes. While I might not save the world with these actions, I do believe that every little step against the threat of idiocracy counts.